---
title: "What the sources say about the Red-Bellied Piranha | AnimalTracks.wiki"
description: "42 claims from the Red-Bellied Piranha profile, each beside the words of the source that backs it."
image: "https://animaltracks.wiki/images/animals/red-bellied-piranha-1.webp"
canonical: "https://animaltracks.wiki/animals/red-bellied-piranha/sources/"
---

# What the sources say about the Red-Bellied Piranha (*Pygocentrus nattereri*)

> 42 claims from the Red-Bellied Piranha profile, each beside the words of the source that backs it. A "..." marks a cut in a quote and [brackets] an insertion.

Profile: [Red-Bellied Piranha](https://animaltracks.wiki/animals/red-bellied-piranha/)

## Brejão (2024). Pygocentrus nattereri. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2024: e.T186604A1815617.

https://doi.org/10.2305/iucn.uk.2024-2.rlts.t186604a1815617.en

| The page says | The source says |
| :--- | :--- |
| Least Concern | IUCN Red List category: Least Concern (LC). (note: stats.conservationStatus; GBIF copy of the assessment) |

## Red-bellied piranha. Smithsonian's National Zoo and Conservation Biology Institute.

https://nationalzoo.si.edu/animals/red-bellied-piranha

| The page says | The source says |
| :--- | :--- |
| Razor-sharp interlocking teeth, a red belly, and a school that doubles as cover from predators. | triangular, razor sharp teeth, which interlock neatly with a matching set above (note: tagline; red belly and cover-seeking school claimed below) |
| a red belly | Red-bellied piranhas are red on their undersides from chin and cheeks to belly. |
| Fins nipped from larger fish, bits of flesh, small fish, insects, aquatic invertebrates and occasional fruit | a good portion of their diet consists of fins nipped from the tails of larger fish. Additional items on a piranha's menu can include bits of flesh, whole small fish, insects, aquatic invertebrates and occasionally, plant material in the form of figs and other ripe fruit. (note: stats.diet; "occasional fruit" keeps the source's "occasionally") |
| Triangular, razor-sharp interlocking teeth that bite down with great force and shearing ability | triangular, razor sharp teeth, which interlock neatly with a matching set above. This design allows piranhas to bite down with incredible force and shearing ability. (note: stats.superpower) |
| The fish can grow to a little over a foot long (30.5 centimeters) and weigh up to 4 pounds (1.81 kilograms) | They can grow to be a little over a foot long (30.5 centimeters) and weigh up to 4 pounds (1.81 kilograms). |
| The Smithsonian's National Zoo gives a lifespan of 10 years or more | Red-bellied piranhas have a lifespan of 10 years or more. |
| Under its high forehead sit powerful muscles attached to a short, stout lower jaw | Beneath the high forehead are powerful muscles that attach to a short, stout lower jaw |
| The teeth are triangular and razor sharp, and they interlock with a matching set above | fitted with triangular, razor sharp teeth, which interlock neatly with a matching set above. |
| The zoo says this design allows a piranha to bite down with incredible force and shearing ability | This design allows piranhas to bite down with incredible force and shearing ability. |
| The teeth are not usually visible: thick, fleshy lips cover them | these formidable teeth are not usually visible, being covered by thick, fleshy lips. |
| In the wild, a good portion of the diet is fins nipped from the tails of larger fish | In the wild, a good portion of their diet consists of fins nipped from the tails of larger fish. |
| The menu can also include bits of flesh, whole small fish, insects, aquatic invertebrates (animals without backbones) and, occasionally, figs and other ripe fruit | Additional items on a piranha's menu can include bits of flesh, whole small fish, insects, aquatic invertebrates and occasionally, plant material in the form of figs and other ripe fruit. |
| The zoo calls these fish important scavengers | these fish are important scavengers. |
| Smaller piranhas search for food during the day. Larger fish tend to be more active at dawn and dusk. | Smaller piranha search for food during the day, while larger fish tend to be more active at dawn and dusk. |
| Red-bellied piranhas tend to travel in schools of 20 or more | They tend to travel in schools of 20 or more individuals. |
| A piranha's triangular teeth interlock with a matching set above, a design that gives its bite shearing ability. | triangular, razor sharp teeth, which interlock neatly with a matching set above. This design allows piranhas to bite down with incredible force and shearing ability. (note: vibe.reason) |

## Pygocentrus nattereri (redbelly piranha). Animal Diversity Web, University of Michigan.

https://animaldiversity.org/accounts/Pygocentrus_nattereri/

| The page says | The source says |
| :--- | :--- |
| Amazon and Paraná-Paraguay river basins, plus rivers of northeast Brazil and the Guianas | can be found east of the Andes in the Parana-Paraguay and Amazon basin. They can also be found in rivers of northeast Brazil and the Guianas. (note: stats.habitat) |
| It is native to South America east of the Andes: the Amazon and Paraná-Paraguay basins, plus rivers of northeast Brazil and the Guianas | can be found east of the Andes in the Parana-Paraguay and Amazon basin. They can also be found in rivers of northeast Brazil and the Guianas. |
| it can be seen lurking or ambushing prey in the daytime, and lists chasing and scavenging as two other ways it gets food | In the daytime P. nattereri can be seen lurking or ambushing prey. Two other methods for obtaining food employed by P. nattereri are chasing and scavenging. |
| one of the more dangerous and aggressive species of piranha, and listed injuring humans among its negative effects | Pygocentrus nattereri is considered one of the more dangerous and aggressive species of piranha. Negative Impacts injures humans |
| one of the most commonly used piranhas in the aquarium trade | Pygocentrus nattereri is one of the most commonly used piranhas in the aquarium trade. |
| the species has been introduced to fresh waters in the United States many times, with reports from Florida, Hawaii, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Ohio, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Texas and Virginia | has been introduced to the freshwaters of the United States on numerous occasions. Introductions have been reported in Florida, Hawaii, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Ohio, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Texas, and Virginia. |
| The fish were probably released from aquariums, and the account says that when one turns up in a lake, many state agencies use the chemical rotenone to kill the fish | The fishes were probably releases from aquariums. When a piranha is found in a lake, many state agencies use the chemical rotenone to kill the fishes. |
| in a 2002 account | To cite this page: Putz, B. 2002. "Pygocentrus nattereri" (On-line), Animal Diversity Web. (note: faq 1; account last updated 2002-10-17) |
| A 2002 Animal Diversity Web account | To cite this page: Putz, B. 2002. "Pygocentrus nattereri" (On-line), Animal Diversity Web. (note: faq 3) |

## Queiroz & Magurran (2005). Safety in numbers? Shoaling behaviour of the Amazonian red-bellied piranha. Biology Letters.

https://doi.org/10.1098/rsbl.2004.0267

| The page says | The source says |
| :--- | :--- |
| a school that doubles as cover from predators | shoaling has a cover-seeking function in this species |
| have a fearsome reputation | Red-bellied piranha (Pygocentrus nattereri) shoals have a fearsome reputation. |
| The Amazon's flooded forests hold a variety and abundance of piranha predators. One team suggested predator defence may be an important reason for shoaling | the variety and abundance of piranha predators in the flooded forests of the Amazon in which they live indicate that an important reason for shoal formation may be predator defence |
| fish in small shoals perceive more risk, measured by how fast their gill covers beat | individual perception of risk, as revealed by elevated ventilatory frequency (opercular rate), is greater in small shoals |
| After a model cormorant (a fish-eating bird) simulated an attack, piranhas in shoals of eight settled back to resting rates faster than those in shoals of two | exposure to a simulated predator attack by a model cormorant demonstrated that resting opercular rates are regained more quickly by piranhas in shoals of eight than they are in shoals of two (note: "after" and "faster" paraphrase "exposure to" and "more quickly") |
| The researchers concluded that shoaling has a cover-seeking function in this species | these results show that shoaling has a cover-seeking function in this species |
| Experiments with wild-caught piranhas supported the idea | Experiments using wild-caught piranhas supported the hypothesis |

## Millot, Vandewalle & Parmentier (2011). Sound production in red-bellied piranhas (Pygocentrus nattereri, Kner): an acoustical, behavioural and morphofunctional study. Journal of Experimental Biology.

https://doi.org/10.1242/jeb.061218

| The page says | The source says |
| :--- | :--- |
| three sounds to three behaviours | three sounds were each associated to a specific behaviour |
| a many-pulse sound during frontal display | The first sound (type 1) was produced during frontal display; it had numerous pulses |
| a single pulse during circling and fighting | The second sound (type 2) was produced during circling and fighting behaviour; it was a single pulse |
| a chasing sound linked to the jaw mechanism | The third sound (type 3) corresponded to chasing behaviour and comprised three to four pulses, each lasting 3±1 ms, with a fundamental frequency of 1739±18 Hz. Using a laser vibrometer to study the swimbladder displacement when stimulated at different frequencies, it was demonstrated that the first two sounds corresponded to the swimbladder mechanism. By contrast, the third sound was associated with the jaw mechanism. |

## Queiroz, Sobanski & Magurran (2010). Reproductive strategies of Red-bellied Piranha (Pygocentrus nattereri Kner, 1858) in the white waters of the Mamirauá flooded forest, central Brazilian Amazon. Environmental Biology of Fishes.

https://doi.org/10.1007/s10641-010-9658-1

| The page says | The source says |
| :--- | :--- |
| both males and females reached sexual maturity at around 160 mm | Sexual maturation (of both males and females) occurred at around 160 mm. |
| The researchers also found two reproductive seasons a year, rather than one, tied to the flooding of the river | piranhas had not one, but rather two annual reproductive seasons, tuned to water level fluctuation and the flooding pulse |
| At that point the sexually active fish became dark and lost most of their red colour | At this point sexually active individuals (of both sexes) became dark and lost most of their red coloration. |
| In a two-year study in Brazil's Mamirauá Reserve that included over 3,000 fish | We tracked the reproductive activity of piranhas in the flooded forests of Mamirauá Reserve, Central Brazilian Amazon, for 2 years, in an investigation that included over 3,000 individual fish. |

## Vicentin, Costa & Súarez (2012). Population ecology of Red-bellied Piranha Pygocentrus nattereri Kner, 1858 (Characidae: Serrasalminae) in the Negro River, Pantanal, Brazil. Environmental Biology of Fishes.

https://doi.org/10.1007/s10641-012-0022-5

| The page says | The source says |
| :--- | :--- |
| A study in the Negro River, in Brazil's Pantanal, estimated a life expectancy of 6.9 years for the piranhas there | In the Pantanal, P. nattereri has a life expectancy (6.9 years) compatible with the 7 cohorts indicated by the growth curve. |